NFL Wrap-Up: Week 9 West Divisions

Rodgers too much for San Diego, Niners win 6th straight.

If you don’t believe in the Niners yet, now is the time you might want to reconsider. San Francisco took their 6th straight win on Sunday, as Frank Gore ran for his 5th straight 100-yard game, good for a franchise record.

Rookie fullback Bruce Miller scored his first touchdown via a pass from QB Alex Smith, and David Akers knocked in four field goals. Washington didn’t score a touchdown until the final minutes, proving once again that San Francisco’s defense is as physical and stingy as any. The 49ers haven’t allowed a rushing TD all season.

Smith was great, completing 17 of 24 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown, good for a QB rating of 109.7. The only bright spot for Washington came with Roy Helu’s performance of 41 rushing yards and 105 in the air. Quarterback John Beck is still winless as a starter.

San Francisco now has their longest winning streak since ’97 and are 4-0 on the road for the first time since the 1992 season.

Seattle 13 Dallas 23

Dallas fans were getting anxious after Tony Romo and the Cowboys couldn’t punch the ball in the end zone early in the game after being within five yards of it three separate possessions. But they were playing Seattle….which means they would have plenty of time to redeem themselves, and they did.

Rookie DeMarco Murray had a big game for Dallas, turning 22 carries into 139 yards on the ground and 47 yards in the passing game. QB Tony Romo was 19 of 31 for 279 yards.

Seattle (2-6) has now lost their third straight, even after Marshawn Lynch rushed for 135 yards and a score in this contest. Although Seattle QB Tarvaris Jackson probably didn’t help their cause, throwing three INT’s.

This was Jason Garrett’s 16th game at the helm in Dallas, the equivalent of a full season. The Cowboys are 9-7 in the span.

Miami 31 Kansas City 3

It seems almost every week in the NFL we have that one game where we say, “where did THAT come from??” This was it.

The Dolphins finally got their first win of the season. QB Matt Moore was fantastic tossing for 244 yards and three touchdowns, the first 3-TD performance by a Miami QB since Chad Pennington in 2008.

Reggie Bush actually had a decent performance as well, rushing for 92 yards and another TD, while tight end Anthony Fasano scored two touchdowns in the first half.

Good ol’ KC looks as if they have reverted to the team they looked like at the beginning of the season, a team that lost its first two contests by a combined score of 89-10, before running off four straight wins.

Head coach Todd Haley sported a beard during the game, a beard which he proclaimed to not shave until his team lost a contest. Well coach, hope you have a good razor.

“This was not the kind of performance we expected or wanted,” Haley said. “This was a very dangerous team that was playing a lot better than their record. It’s hard to win in the NFL and they just did a better job than us.”

Denver 38 Oakland 24

Can the ‘option’ really work in the NFL? Today it sure did.

Tim Tebow not only threw for two TDs, but ran for 117 yards, while Broncos teammate, Willis McGahee added 163 yards and two more TD’s in the win over Oakland. The option combo racked up 298 total yards, the highest rushing total for Denver since a 300 yard game against Seattle in 2000.

Erick Decker and Eddie Royal also had scores in the air, showing that Tebow was spreading the ball around in the passing game.

“I thought he improved throwing the ball,” head coach John Fox said. “I think he’s always run the ball pretty effectively. He’s very competitive by nature. You see evidence of that. Now it’s just learning how to be an NFL quarterback. In my opinion he’s gotten better each time out.”

Carson Palmer was much better in his 2nd game as well, going 18 for 34 for 312 yards with three touchdowns, however he also threw three picks, including one that gave the momentum to Denver in the final seconds of the third quarter.

One final stat: The only other Broncos QB to rush for at least 100 yards in a game was Norris Weese with 120 in 1976 against Chicago

St.Louis 13 Arizona 19

There wasn’t much to watch in this game until it was forced into overtime, which was short lived after Patrick Peterson got hold of the ball. Peterson returned a 99 yard punt-return for a touchdown to win the game for Arizona.

Peterson is the first player in NFL history to have three punt returns for touchdowns in his first eight games. Looks like another Devin Hester in the making to me.

Rams back Steven Jackson had another big game, sporting 130 yards. Bradford was also serviceable, tossing for 255 yards on 36 attempts.

GAME OF THE WEEKGreen Bay 45 San Diego 38

Aaron Rodgers is inhuman. The former Cal QB is putting up such ridiculous numbers that even the largest of Brett Favre loyalists have to be placing their most dearest memories behind them. Rodgers is performing like a hall of famer right now, and it’s arguable he’s even better than Favre ever was.

The Packers haven’t lost since December of last year, and Rodgers is the reason.

Putting the team on his back again, Rodgers completed 21 of 26 passes for 247 yards and leads the NFL with 24 total TD throws.

Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers threw 4 touchdowns, 3 of them to wideout Vincent Jackson, but also threw three interceptions, two of them pick-6s that gave the Packers a 21-7 lead early on.

After closing the gap to 45-38 after a successful on-side kick late in the game, the Chargers simply couldn’t pull another rabbit out of the hat in this one. The Chargers now find themselves in a three way tie for first place in the west.